


Split Loyalties

by PJ1228



Category: Forever Knight
Genre: F/M, Pre-Dark Knight
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-09
Updated: 2014-03-09
Packaged: 2018-01-15 04:06:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,496
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1290697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PJ1228/pseuds/PJ1228
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Starting pre-Dark Knight, this story tells the events leading to the finale of season 1 from Janette's perspective.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Split Loyalties

**Author's Note:**

  * For [skieswideopen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/skieswideopen/gifts).



> **Disclaimer:** Forever Knight and its characters were created by Barney Cohen and J.D. Parriott and are copyright to Sony/Tristar. None of the characters in this story belongs to me. I'm just borrowing them temporarily. No infringement intended. No profit is being made. 
> 
> Written for Skieswideopen on behalf of Fandom_Stocking 2013/2014
> 
> **Acknowledgements:** Special thanks to Brightknightie for beta reading and suggestions.
> 
> **Timeline:** Pre-Dark Knight

**Split Loyalties**  
by PJ  
February 2014

 

_Toronto 1990_

The wineglass slipped from her hand. Janette gasped, leaning heavily on the Raven's bar, as a searing pain swept through her. It ended as soon as it had hit her. Finding herself unharmed, her eyes widened as she realized that the sensation had been the echo of someone else's pain. 

" _Mon dieu_ , Nicolas!"

It was the first time in Toronto that she really felt him through their mutual bond. Although she had been aware of his presence in town, he had been keeping a low profile and refrained from visiting her or her club. Judging from occasional conversations, none of her acquaintances had been in contact with him either. Not even her supplier had seen him. Apparently he obtained his nourishment elsewhere. 

She often wondered whether he were still avoiding her because of her insistence on bringing Daniel into the family. Nicolas had departed shortly afterwards to join the resistance in France and she hadn't seen him since. Leave it to Nicolas to hold a grudge for nearly half a century. 

When he had moved to Toronto about a year ago, she had begun looking forward to their reunion. She knew they would fall in love again. It had always been that way throughout the centuries. Yet, she would always wait for him to make the first move. Otherwise he might get the idea that she regretted her decision to leave him on that fateful night in Rome almost five centuries ago. Although she yearned for him, she insisted on this act of self-preservation. 

However, the nights since his arrival had turned into weeks and the weeks into months. Sometimes she wasn't even sure if he were still in town at all because she could hardly feel him. Until tonight.

"Oh. Nicolas, what have you gotten yourself into now?" she wondered on her way to her quarters, where she quickly changed out of her posh full-length gown into a tight-fitting leather catsuit. 

As if on cue, her phone rang. She considered briefly not answering. She wanted to be on her way to rescue Nicolas from whatever peril he was facing. On the other hand, the phone call could be related.

"What?" she hissed into the receiver.

"What happened to Nicholas?" a stern voice demanded.

" _Je ne sais pas_ ," Janette replied, annoyed at the delay.

"You don't know?" 

Janette could virtually see two eyebrows lifting on the other end of the line.

"I felt his pain, but I haven't seen him since he came to Toronto. I have no idea what he's doing these days."

There was a moment of silence before the voice lectured distinctly. "Then I suggest you find out! Your brother has been severely injured. He might require your assistance."

"I was just on my way out when you called," Janette shot back. "Where are you?" Apparently he was abroad and unable to interfere himself. 

"Rome. And it's daylight." The impatience was hardly concealed. "Find him and report back to me immediately."

" _Bon_." Without waiting for another reply, Janette ended the call and rushed out of the Raven. Her concern had grown since learning that Lacroix had sensed Nicolas' pain even across the Atlantic.

Janette took to the air and landed on the roof of First Canadian Place. Closing her eyes, she cast out her senses in search for Nicolas. Since that brief flicker of pain, she had been unable to sense him at all. She tried several other vantage points across the city, but she was unable to detect any hint of Nicolas' whereabouts.

After three hours of futile searching, the rising sun forced Janette back to the Raven. She grabbed a bottle from the bar and retreated into her quarters. The fact that she did not sense Nicolas at all could mean only two things: he was either unconscious or dead. She refused to believe the latter. The pain she had felt was not the pain of a stake driven through one's heart. Nor was it the swift sting of decapitation. Whatever it was that had attacked Nicolas, it affected the entire body. While certainly unpleasant, it was no cause to worry as long as his head remained attached. Janette shivered as she thought of fire. What if fire had consumed his body? But that wouldn't explain the short period of pain. At his age, Nicolas would take longer before he turned to ashes, she reasoned with herself.

Around noon, Janette leafed through the paper while nursing another bottle of blood. A headline about an explosion at a local bank caught her eye, and she quickly perused the article. According to witnesses, a man had tried to stop a gang robbery in process, but was killed in the heroic act by a pipe bomb. The man had not yet been identified and the remains were taken to the city morgue where forensics hoped to get an ID from his teeth. It was a far-fetched assumption, but it was just like Nicolas to save mortals in distress.

Eagerly, Janette waited for sunset. As soon as the last light had faded, she landed on the roof across from the morgue. A wave of relief washed through her as she sensed him. Due to his special nature, his body had mended itself during the day and Nicolas had regained consciousness. A short time later she saw him walking out of the building, looking quite dishevelled in his torn clothing, but otherwise unharmed. Without paying her any attention, he took to the air. Janette lingered a while on the roof. When no one followed him, she assumed that Nicolas' resurrection from the dead had gone unnoticed. Satisfied, she returned to the Raven and called Lacroix.

"He's all right," she informed him.

"So I have noticed, Janette. An update of your investigation during the day would have been most appreciated," Lacroix scolded.

"I had no clue until I read about the pipe bomb. He was brought into the morgue."

"I trust there won't be any complications? I would hate to read about miracle risings from the dead in the newspaper."

"I'm sure Nicolas took care of anyone who may have seen him."

"Very well – I shall arrive tomorrow evening," Lacroix announced.

Janette frowned. She was certain that Nicolas would leave town immediately when Lacroix arrived. She had been waiting too long to lose him again so soon. "I'm not sure that would be wise, _mon pére_ ," she broached the subject carefully.

"Why?"

Janette was sure only her intimate address prompted him to hear her out. "Although Nicolas has been here for almost a year, he hasn't yet found anything with which to occupy himself. At this moment, he would move on simply because nothing is holding him here."

During the long moment of silence, Janette imagined Lacroix's frown.

"Then I suggest that you make the effort to ensure something is holding him from now on," he insinuated. 

" _Bien sure_. I will take good care of him." She quickly ended the call and closed her eyes in relief, knowing that she had bought Nicolas a little more time to live on his own without Lacroix's interference. She knew she owed him that much for Daniel.

* * *

_Toronto 1992_

"I am very disappointed in you, Janette!" Lacroix towered above her, seething. Without warning he, had entered her quarters and tossed a copy of _La Stampa_ on the table. Before she had a chance to read the headline, he had hit her square across the face, sending her flying backwards onto the couch. "Is this what you call 'taking good care of him'? Nicholas is still searching for a cure!"

"What are you talking about?" Janette tried to make sense of his words. Nicolas still hadn't made contact with her during the past two years. She knew, however, from occasional news reports that he had joined the police force.

"The Royal Ontario Museum is hosting an exhibit of artefacts from Altun Kinal. The uniqueness of the findings even made the international news."

"They found another jade cup?" Janette ventured.

"Don't tell me Nicholas is unaware of that fact." Reaching out, Lacroix lifted her chin with a finger tip, forcing her to look at him. "So, what is he doing with himself these days, hm?"

Janette remained silent, evading his eyes, although the grip on her chin tightened.

"I will find out anyway. You may as well tell me and save me the trouble." 

"He's a detective. Homicide," Janette stated.

Lacroix let out a chuckle and released her chin. "Really. How peculiar. Very well, I shall give him something to detect."

The next instant, Janette was alone. With a shaking hand, she lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply.

* * *

The following evening, the local news reported a murder in the museum. A security guard had been killed and one exhibition piece was stolen. Due to the similar MO, the media linked the murder to a chain of killings among the homeless. What bothered Janette were reports about victims drained of blood. The media were already calling them 'Vampire Killings'. Lacroix couldn't be so foolish as to risk exposing the community… could he?

"I'm as concerned as you are about the way the media respond," a velvet voice answered her thoughts. Lacroix came up behind her and accepted the glass the bartender quickly placed in front of him. "I assure you, whoever is responsible, will be dealt with."

"You have nothing to do with these killings?" Janette asked.

Lacroix stopped in the middle of raising his glass. "Certainly not. Although I must say they, come in handy as a calling card for Nicholas. He will visit you soon. And when he does, you will send him to this place." He left a slip of paper on the bar and turned to vanish in the crowd.

Janette eyed the note. It was the name of a radio station, located near the stockyards.

* * *

Nicolas entered the Raven shortly after sunset. Janette suppressed a sense of wounded pride at the fact that he had evaded her for so long and mocked him about his favourite sport. It didn't take long before she realized that he hadn't come to see her at all. He needed to see Lacroix. She gave him Lacroix's location and was rewarded with a brush of his lips against her knuckles, accompanied by a look that spoke of longing and desire. It held a promise that caused her discontent to evaporate. With a sigh she turned back to the bar and downed a glass of blood. Experience had taught her not to get between Nicolas and Lacroix when a confrontation was inevitable. She only hoped the outcome wouldn't prompt Nicolas to leave town again.

* * *

Janette's hand shot to her heart as a fiery pain ripped through her. She received a concerned look from her bartender as she staggered against the bar, while her body continued to feel as if it was consumed by fire.

" _Mon dieu_ , Lucien!" she gasped. As soon as she regained her balance, she rushed out of the Raven. The vibration led her towards a warehouse where flames were leaking from the upper storey. Landing on the roof, she discovered a burning body near the skylight. Acting on instinct, Janette used her cape to extinguish the deadly flames. Then she took a moment to examine the smoldering form. A log of wood protruded from the mid section, incapacitating it effectively. The ring on the right hand seemed to be the only recognizable item not affected by the fire. 

Overcoming a sense of horror, Janette placed a boot on the body and pulled out the wood. When there was no reaction, she wondered briefly if she had done more damage than good by the deed. Glancing down from the roof, she saw Nicolas cradling the body of a woman, apparently oblivious to her presence. Another mortal who had the misfortune of coming between Nicolas and Lacroix, Janette lamented. Judging from Lacroix's current condition, this woman had obviously meant a lot to Nicolas. She had never seen him successfully inflicting that much damage to their master.

Aware of the approaching fire brigade, Janette gathered Lacroix's body in her arms and flew to the Raven.

* * *

After placing Lacroix on the couch, Janette fetched several bottles from the bar. She emptied one herself before cutting her wrist with a knife. When she had established a constant flow of blood, she held her wrist above Lacroix's mouth and waited. After a while, her wound healed, but there wasn't any change in Lacroix, nor did she see any swallowing motion. 

After draining another bottle, she repeated the procedure. "Oh Nicolas, what have you done?!" Perhaps it was wrong not to reconnect with Nicolas earlier. Perhaps she could have prevented the accumulation of hatred that drove him to kill Lacroix. Nicolas probably thought he had succeeded. And Janette was beginning to wonder whether he might be right. She had sliced her arm five times more without any effect. 

She refused to believe, however, that Lacroix was truly dead. Although it would surely have served Nicolas' immediate best interests for her to have left Lacroix on the roof for the sun to finish, she felt compelled to offer whatever help she could provide. She had not forgotten that Lacroix had saved her from what many would consider a fate worse than death and given her a new life and purpose. She owed him her eternal gratitude for that. But there was another reason that prompted her not to give up on him. Right now, Nicolas might feel justified in his actions. But she knew him too well. In time he would feel regret, as he always did after an atrocious deed. She wanted to spare him that. Yet, she was not sure if she could, considering the lack of improvement she witnessed before her. 

With an uncertain feeling, she gathered Lacroix's body in her arms and headed down into the cellar where she placed him on a cot in an unused vault. After making sure that he was comfortable enough, she deposited a crate of bottles beside him and locked the door.

* * *

It took months before Janette noticed a slight change. The skin was still charred, but the body began to absorb the blood she poured regularly over him.

She had not mentioned any of her involvement to Nicolas after discovering that Nicolas indeed believed that Lacroix was dead. He had started to visit the club more frequently. Although he mostly pretended to come on police business, she was enjoying the growing attention she received from him.

About a year later, Nicolas finally opened up and told her the whole story of that fateful night in Paris that had prompted him to give up killing altogether. Janette was shocked at the way Lacroix had manipulated him. After Nicolas had left the club, she grabbed a stake and headed towards the vault. When she opened the door, the room was empty...

FIN

**Author's Note:**

> Notes:
> 
> This story contains references to the following episodes:  
>  _Dark Knight_  
>  _Dark Knight – The second chapter_  
>  _Only the Lonely_  
>  _Father Figure_  
>  _Outside the Lines_  
>  _Partners of the Month_  
>  _A Fate Worse than Death_  
>  _False Witness_  
>  _Love you to Death_


End file.
